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Tyler Ethridge, of Colorado Springs, is accused of breaching barricades to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6., federal court documents show. (Photo provided by the U.S. District Attorney's Office in Washington D.C.)
A Colorado Springs man accused of pushing past barricades to storm the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6, 2021, and obstructing Congress’ proceeding to certify the results of the 2020 presidential election was found guilty Friday at a federal bench trial.
Tyler Ethridge is scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 18 after a U.S District Court for the District of Columbia judge found that Ethridge “acted knowingly and corruptly” when he resisted police officers’ guarding the Capitol and remained inside for more than 30 minutes despite orders to leave.
Ethridge was convicted of six charges, including civil disorder and tampering with a victim, witness or informant. He is the latest Coloradan to be found guilty of federal crimes accusing them of their involvement in the Jan. 6 riot.
Authorities arrested Ethridge in July 8, 2022, and he was released from jail on a personal recognizance bond four days later, court records show.
Authorities were alerted to Ethridge’s involvement in the riot after a tipster who knew Ethridge from a bible college in Woodland Park said Ethridge livestreamed the rally on his Facebook page and later deleted the videos, according to court documents. The tipster said Ethridge was “on scaffolding outside Nancy Pelosi’s office and inside the chamber. He was telling everyone about it.”
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In an interview with the FBI, Ethridge said he didn’t destroy any barricades to the Capitol, but video obtained by the FBI shows Ethridge removing fencing on the northwest side of the building and a fence that held a sign reading: “Area Closed.” Ethridge was among the large crowd that yelled “stop the steal” while pushing through the barricade.
Ethridge climbed scaffolding outside before entering the Capitol and stayed inside for about 30 minutes recording videos, court documents said.
“I’m probably going to lose my job as a pastor after this. … I think we’re to a point where talk is cheap. If this makes me lose my, my reputation, I don’t care,” he said in one of his videos, according to court documents.
Olivia Prentzel is a general assignment writer based in Colorado Springs for The Colorado Sun, covering breaking news, wildfires and all things interesting impacting Coloradans. Before joining The Sun, Olivia covered criminal justice for The Colorado Springs Gazette. She’s also... More by Olivia Prentzel
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